The Liberator Magazine
The Official Publication of the College of Liberal Arts
Written by Kara Hildebrand (she/her)Graphic by Quynhmai Tran (she/her) – Flipping on an episode of Riverdale (totally ironically, of course), presents the unsuspecting audience member with a cast in their mid-to-late twenties lamenting about relatable teenager problems. The school dance got canceled, the boy next door doesn’t like me back, and parents are so controlling. Perhaps this slips past them, […]
Written by Justin PastranoGraphic by Asiyah Saeed. – Trigger Warning: I have every intention of being sensitive towards those who have been affected by suicide. This is a profound issue in our society that should be discussed. The target audience here is not for those who may be experiencing these issues. The Myth of Sisyphus has an emphasis on the […]
Written by Jadyn Simental.Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – Sometimes I catch myself deepening my voice to hide any form of femininity. I find myself eyeing make-up in stores, but then remember the time I was caught wearing it in high school and swore it was acne medicine. I talk about painting my nails with friends, but consider my disapproving mother […]
Written by Alyssa Hiarker.Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – We all know the horror movie experience: a darkened theatre, ominous music to set the mood, screams followed by a collective breath of laughter, strangers turned to friends as the tension builds with each new scare. There’s more to horror movies than just the moments of abject terror that come with jump scares; […]
Written by Hayle Chen. Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – For Allison, who told me I could absolutely write on a topic that I had never pitched to her before—you brought the best kind of control to this chaotic world. “To be in hell is to drift; to be in heaven is to steer.” When addressing the fervent lust for control that […]
Written by Hayle Chen. Graphic by Quynhmai Tran. – Communication. Thirteen letters, five syllables, and an abundance of dichotomies: we do it all the time. From the fleeting goodbye you call out to your roommate as the door slams shut, to delivering well-composed answers specifically devised for a life-altering interview, communication is undoubtedly humanity’s unwavering constant. However, do we recognize […]
Written by Harrison Fernelius. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – Strip malls, aren’t they beautiful? Now before you pass judgment, please let me explain. Some of the most vivid memories of my childhood come from those summer days spent strip mall shopping with my mom. The palpable heat of the sun giving way to the ice-cold chill of the store, as […]
Written by Frida Silva. Graphic by Emma Robinson. – When the Twilight films first started being released, expressing any positive feelings for the movies meant enduring endless shame and online harassment. Just like any other pop culture phenomenon with a fan base consisting of mainly teenage girls, Twilight generated endless memes and jokes at the expense of the franchise and […]
Written by Pilar Padilla. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. Pilar Padilla is currently a junior at Westwood High School in Austin, Texas. – Over the past few weeks, Austinites were hit with the shocking news of the University of Texas at Austin’s ties to the academic cheating scandal that swept prestigious colleges across the nation. The school is being sued by […]
Written by Frida Silva.Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. – There’s an ongoing joke in the lesbian community that Hozier is actually possessed by an ancient lesbian spirit, and that’s why his songs sound the way that they do. I, for one, strongly agree. I’m not saying a straight man isn’t capable of expressing such a profound, almost sacred, love and admiration […]
Written by Quynhanh Tran. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. – In seventh grade, I discovered the young adult series Maximum Ride. I spent a week devouring each novel, some of them twice through, and I still couldn’t get enough. After realizing there wasn’t any more to the series, I went on the internet and discovered Maximum Ride food fight fics (there […]
Written by Yulissa Chavez. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. – Politics may appear problematic but being ill-informed on policies or platforms before voting is even more problematic. Social media provides users with a mass of information, opinions, and ideas in a matter of seconds; however, this accessibility can also be counterintuitive for those who may not understand the multifaceted factors that […]
Written by Hayley Wood. It’s 3:30 on a Wednesday afternoon. The Texas sun illuminates the east side of campus as students trek towards the stadium for their commute home. For those heading southbound on E 23rd Street, life at UT is strikingly different from their peers headed home to West Campus. The 680 bus becomes crowded until every nearly every […]
Written by Brooke Quach. #Metoo. Aziz Ansari. Cat Person. #Timesup. Performative allyship. Consent. Sex Ed. These are only some of phrases, names, and ideas that have been thrown around social media in the midst of the movement against sexual harassment and assault. These terms embody the nuances of the movement and bring to light the systemic problems that perpetuate these […]
Written by Hira Vayani. Many South Asian children’s earliest memories include their family and a stethoscope. It’s the child’s 4th birthday, and they have received a doctor’s kit as a present. This is just the beginning of the continuous career conditioning, as most people in the South Asian community have a narrow definition of success, due to cultural and societal […]
Written by Grace Schrobilgen During my first year at UT, I stopped reading for pleasure. I was so overwhelmed by assigned readings for classes that I began to forget how much I relish leafing through the pages of a book and allowing myself to become attached to a character, concept, or storyline. Reading stimulates the mind more than Netflix ever […]
The Liberator Magazine 